Monday, May 23, 2011

How do I discover the Plans that God has for me?

In an earlier post I talked about the plans that God has for each of us. But you may be wondering how do I discover the plans that God has for me? I want to give you the process that I use to find God's plans for me. It is a five step process that I call PLANS. Each letter shows a specific step that I use to discover God's wonderful plans. I pray that this same process will help you find God's exciting Plans for your life. P.L.A.N.S.1.Pray: Set aside some time and talk to God. Get yourself a journal and write down the areas of your life that you are seeking God to show you His plans. Come to God with an attitude of faith, which is the attitude of believing that God wants to show you His plans for your life. Approach this prayer time as a PLANNING SESSION with the CHIEF PLANNER. Be willing to surrender all of your plans to His plans. You may even discover that your plans are His plans for your life. But know that if God changes your plans and gives you new plans you can trust His plans because you can trust Him.

2. Listen: As you seek Him for His plans come to Him with an open heart. Be willing to listen to Him. Because God is Spirit He primarily speaks in spirit or He speaks in your spirit. During this time pay attention to any impressions or any verses of the Bible that comes to your mind. For me this is an exciting time. God often speaks to me and gives me ideas and words of His plans for me. Every story and book that I have written the idea came as I was listening to God. When I receive a plan from God it stays in my mind or in my spirit. To be very sure that it is God speaking I will meditate on it. When I know it's God I will continue to pray over what I'm hearing for three days and If the impression or thought is still with me than I know it's God revealing His plan for me. Let me give you an example of how this work:A couple of years ago I ended a business relationship with a person and I needed to connect with another person to complete the business that I was involved in. I wanted to know if the person I was considering was God's plan for my business to be completed and so I prayed about this person for three days. Each day it became clearer to me that the person I was praying about was the person that God had sent to me. After three days I decided to partner with that person and it was the best decision I made that year. The person that I ended the relationship with I didn't pray about him I just took a leap on my understanding and it cost me a whole year.

3.AGREE: Whatever you hear God say agree with it. Whatever plan God reveals to you agree with it. Say yes to God's plan and ask Him what does He want you to do. Sometime agreeing with God means doing something entirely new but trust Him and say yes. Without your yes God will not execute the plans that He has for you and you will miss a life changing encounter. Your future depends on you coming into agreement with God's Plan. Being in agreement with God is not just you saying yes but it is also joining God in partnership for your life and everyone who will be affected by your decision to cooperate with God.

4. NOURISH: The plans that God reveals to you is a seed. He plants it in your mind and He makes it grow until it is seen. Your assignment is to nourish it. You feed the plan until God brings it forth. You nourish it by remembering it and meditating on it. You pray over it and you protect it from doubt which is a weed. You keep it by focusing on it. As you nourish it it will grow. What you don't nourish will die.

5. SEARCH: Praise God for the plans that you bring forth in your life. Life is so exciting when you know that you are participating in God's plan for your life. But as you carry out the present plans for your life always keep your eyes open for the new plans of God. Plans are for a season and when the season is over God will give you a new plan for a new season. It was God's plan for Israel to cross the Jordan River and after they crossed the river it was God plan's for them to go to Jericho. That's true for all of us. God's plans for each of us is progressive and unfolding. As you remain faithful to God for the current plan also be a seeker for the new plan that God may bring. Don't ever accept an attitude that this is it for me. I'm at the end of the line. God may have another plan for you.